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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fan · field · scale · plane · wake · bank · court · staff

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. scale — in music
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — a subject
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. staff — employees
  9. bank — for money
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. scale — size or range
  12. bank — of a river
  13. court — of a king
  14. staff — employees
  15. court — of law
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. wake — a trail
  18. staff — a stick
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. field — farmland
  21. plane — a tool
  22. court — for sport
  23. bank — for money
  24. plane — in geometry

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com